Description
Apple pie parfaits give you all the flavors of apple pie, with way less work. They are super easy to make, and fun to eat. They are a great dessert anytime in the fall, or for Thanksgiving.
Ingredients
Apple pie filling
- 3 large sweet baking apples (such as honeycrisp, fuji, or pink lady etc).
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Crust
- 1 cup graham crackers, crushed (measure after crushing)
Whipped cream
Instructions
- Prepare the apples: wash, and dry the apples well, and core them. Then, chop them into 1/2 inch pieces. I leave the skin on, this helps the apples from turning to mush when we cook them. The skin gets nice and soft, so don’t worry.
- Cook the apples: Add the sugar to a large skillet, spread it out evenly. Turn the heat on high and allow the sugar to melt. Give the pan a swirl to move the sugar around a few times. Once the sugar is all melted, and has turned a light amber brown (a light caramel), turn the heat down to medium and add the 2 tbs butter, apples, 1 tbs water, and 2 tbs heavy cream – stir until combined and everything is melted. Turn the heat back up to high – allow the mixture to come to a boil, and reduce to a heavy simmer. Cook stirring, frequently for about 2 to 3 minutes, or until the liquid mixture has reduced a little, and the apples are fork tender. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt, stir to combine. At this time, carefully taste an apple, along with a little caramel. If it’s too tart, then add another tablespoon or two of sugar. This will depend on how sweet your apples naturally are. Remove from the heat.
- Cool: Transfer the apples to a dish, or plate, and allow the mixture to cool to room temp (probably about 1 hour). This is important so that the hot apple mixture doesn’t melt the whipped cream topping. (See notes for make ahead tips).
- Crush up the graham crackers: Use your fingers to break up the graham crackers into 1/2 to 1 inch chunks. I like the graham crackers to be larger in size and not a fine crumb so that it stays crunchy after the juicy apples are on top of the graham crackers. Measure out 1 cup. Reserving a few extra smaller pieces for garnish. If not serving right away you can store the crushed graham crackers in an air tight container.
- Make whipped cream: 15 minutes before you want to serve your dessert, make the whipped cream. I have a homemade whipped cream recipe here. I highly recommend making your own whipped cream for this recipe. This dessert is so simple, and easy to make, that making sure all of the ingredients are the best they can be will help to make this dish extra special and more homemade.
- Assemble: Just before serving assemble the apple pie parfaits. I used 6 ounce parfait glasses, but you can easily use any small glass bowl, or a stemless wine glass that you fill half way up. Sprinkle a layer of the crushed graham crackers on the bottom of each bowl or glass, evenly divide it among each glass. Spoon the apple pie filling, along with the sauce. Then spoon a big dollop of whipped cream on top of the apples. Garnish a few sprinkles of the finer graham crackers on the whipped cream, if desired.
- Serve: Serve immediately after assembling the parfaits. You don’t want the crust part to get soggy.
Notes
heavy cream: I wrote this recipe assuming that you will make homemade whipped cream, so you would already have a pint of heavy whipping cream on hand. Therefore, the 2 tablespoons of the cream for the apples was no biggie. If you don’t make homemade whipped cream (which I recommend), then swap the heavy cream for more water in the apple pie filling portion. It won’t be as delicious, but it works.
graham crackers: I think gingersnap cookies could also be delicious here.
gluten free: to make this recipe gluten free make sure you use gluten free graham crackers, or gingersnap cookies.
Make-ahead tips: You should make the apple pie filling portion of the recipe in advance since we need it to be room temp. You can leave the mixture on the counter for up to 4 hours (give or take) if you’re serving it the same day. If you want to make it a few days in advance, then store the cooled mixture in an air tight container. The sauce will kind of solidify in the fridge due to the butter. You can either allow it to come to room temp for 2 hours. Or, simply warm it very gently in the microwave, just enough to loosen up the sauce. You can also crush the graham crackers in advance and store them in an air tight container at room temp.
Storing leftovers: Only assemble as many parfaits as you plan to serve. To store any extra, store the apples separately in the fridge. Store the graham crackers in an air tight container on the counter. And store the whipped cream in the fridge. See my whipped cream post for how to revive leftover whipped cream.
